


Flowery Home

by SamiraHeaven93



Category: One Piece
Genre: (they are naked at some point but there will not be any kind of sex!), Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Established Relationship, F/M, Hurt/Comfort, Non-Sexual Intimacy, Post-Marineford, So expect feels, this will be lovey dovey at points
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-25
Updated: 2021-01-25
Packaged: 2021-03-18 00:41:20
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,862
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28983537
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SamiraHeaven93/pseuds/SamiraHeaven93
Summary: The war was over. They had lost. Marco is trying his best to help his family through the grief, but forgets his own need to mourn the family they lost. His siblings get the only person alive who will always get through to him, his wife Erika.
Relationships: Fushichou Marco | Phoenix Marco/Original Character(s)
Kudos: 9





	Flowery Home

**Author's Note:**

> This is not what I usually write, but the idea came to me when I really needed some comfort. Just something sweet, without sex.
> 
> So this happened. It’s probably pure self-indulgent and I’m not kidding about the lovey-dovey. I might have taken that a bit to far, but heck, sometimes you just need something like that right?
> 
> (Erika is an other name for the flower heather where I come from, hence the Titel of this work)

The galley was quite, quieter then usual and not only because it was in the middle of the afternoon with only a few of the crew scattered around, having a little snack.

Marco sat alone on a table, papers, lists and maps spread out in front of him, a half drunken mug of now ice cold coffee and a sandwich with only a bite taken out of it next to him.

They were his crew now. Pops was dead. Ace was dead. And he couldn’t do anything. He was the acting captain now, responsible for all that was left of the Whitebeard pirates and their allies. God, everything had gone so horribly wrong...

They all had known it wouldn’t last forever, not after Pops had gotten sick. Marco had know, had feared, that this would be his last fight. But he couldn’t do anything to help his father, he hadn’t be allowed to do anything. Pops had always refused to be healed by his phoenix powers. Not that he would have been able to do anything about his illness, but he could have done something about his injuries at least.

He was a fucking doctor and he wasn’t allowed to help, yoi?! That had been one of the orders he had hated to follow.

Marco sighed and crossed out an other point on one of his lists, but there were many more still on it.

Suddenly warm hands came to a rest on his shoulder and someone kissed the top of his head. He stiffened for a moment before relaxing at a very familiar voice.

“How long are you sitting here, Marco?”

The pirate looked up and smiled, it was small and short lived, but genuine.

“Erika! What are you doing her?”

The dark haired woman sat down next to him and mustered him. “Haruta got me. Sphinx is only a few hours away after all.” She gently turned his face so she could look him directly in the eyes. “How long were you working today? You don’t look like you have slept much either.”

“Yeah...” he took her hand and held it in his. He looked down at them while caressing a scar on the back of hers. “I’ll manage, yoi.”

“I know, but you have to take breaks too! We all are sad and hurt. You don’t have to do all this alone.”

“But I...”

She put a finger on his lips to silence him and glared at him. “No buts! You don’t have to shoulder that burden alone. No one expects you to. The other commanders will gladly help you. Please let them! You are overworking yourself, Marco. If you keep going like that you will work and worry yourself to death. Please rest, eat and try to get some sleep. I don’t want to loose you too, my love.”

They were a couple for twenty years now. They weren’t all lovey dovey around each other, not anymore. They usually just called themselves by their names in private. Hearing “ _my love_ ” meant so much.

Marco smiled softly at Erika before kissing her hand. “I’m sorry, yoi. I made you worried, Flower.” An other kiss. “I should have listened to Vista... and Izou... and basically everyone else...” An other kiss. “I’m glad they brought you here. I will try to do better, yoi.”

Erikas amber eyes softened and she smiled at him. “Good. Then why don’t you start with finishing your sandwich? Or do you want me to get a pineapple to force feed you the whole thing?”

Marco snorted and pulled her into a quick hug. “No, thank you. I love pineapples, but a whole one would be hard to swallow.” He let go of her and took a bit from his abandoned sandwich. “Happy, yoi?”

“Happier, when you have finished that thing. What’s even on it?”

The pirate chewed for a moment in thought. “Honestly? I’m not sure. Ham, cheese, lettuce and tomatoes I think...”

He finished eating and tried to pick up his quill again, but she was faster and snatched it away. “Ah-a! No work. You need to rest, that can wait!”

“But...”

“No buts Marco! Erika is right.” Vista and some other commanders appeared next to them and frowned down at their brother. “You need to rest. You look horrible. One of us can finish that.”

“And no ‘ _but I’m the acting captain_ ’ bullshit. You can’t possibly think you have to do everything on your own.” Haruta lightly punched his should before crossing their arms.

“They are right. There are multiple commanders for a reason. The crew grew to big so Pops split it up into divisions. You do remember that.”

“Yes I do remember, Rakuyo, yoi.”

“And we are family! We work together and help each other! Yes, you are our big brother, but who says that the little siblings can’t help their big brother?”

“Haruta is right. Even if it’s sometimes a bit weird to think of you as the ‘oldest brother’ considering quite a few of us are actually older then you, Marco. I still remember your teen years clearly.”

The former division commander blushed slightly before he sighed. “You won’t let me finish all that, will you, yoi?”

“Nope! Not a chance!” Haruta stuck their tongue out before grinning. “I’m sure Erika will gladly make sure that her hubby actually gets some rest and doesn’t sneak somewhere to find more work.”

The woman stood up, now surrounded by the commanders and offered Marco her hand. “Come on, let’s get you some much needed rest.”

He took the hand and lightly smiled at his comrades, his family, then he stood up and kept holding her hand. “Thanks.”

***

It didn’t take them long to reach his new cabin. It was small and impersonal, not like the one he used to have on their flagship. But the Moby was gone. One more comrade lost in the war. He should have known it would end like this. He did know it would end like this, but he didn’t want to admit it, just like the inevitable death of Pops.

Pops had chosen Marineford as his last stand.

The Moby had known she wouldn’t return either. He had heard the knocking, had seen the small figure standing on the bow of the ship the night before the war.

Klabautermänner don’t show themselves normally. Hearing knocking is a good sign, a sign that the ship is loved by its crew and that itself helps doing repairs. Seeing a Klabautermann is a bad omen, it means that the ship, and sometimes even its crew, is doomed. That they were in grief danger and that their time was over.

Seeing a Klabautermann was a bad omen, and a warning. Sometimes the crew could avoid its destiny, but they had no chance. Their course was set. To Marineford. To war. To death.

Marcos breath hitched and he wanted nothing more then to squeeze Erikas hand a bit tighter, but she had let go of him to take of her shoes. She looked at him and kneeled down before him.

“What are you doing, yoi?” Was that his voice? Did he sound this horrible all the time? No wonder his brothers had grown worried...

“Helping you to take of your shoes too.” She opened the fastening on his sandals and pulled them off before standing up again. She offered him his hand and smiled when he instantly took it. “Now let’s lay down and get you some rest.”

It took them a bit to get comfortable in the to small for two bed, but in the end they managed. Marco had basically curled up around her with his head resting on her chest. Erika had put an arm around him and was gently caressing one of his arms with her other hand.

“You don’t have to do all that alone, Marco. We are all here to help you. You don’t have to suffer alone. You are allowed to mourn and cry.”

His grip around her tightened and he buried his face in her chest.

“Crying about loosing loved ones isn’t weakness. You are not weak for showing feelings.”

He took a shacking breath to calm himself down again, but a few tears started to run down his cheeks. It felt so good to be in her arms again. It was warm and made him feel safe. He loved his brothers and trusted them with his life, but it was different with Erika.

***

When Marco woke up he felt warm. Warm and safe. It had been so long since he last felt like this, that, for a moment, he thought all the horrible things that had happened had just been a nightmare.

But they weren’t. It had all been real. The losses. The deaths...

The only thing that kept him from breaking down again was the steady heartbeat he could hear, the soft rising of Erikas chest under his head and her arm around him. He took a deep breath and smiled softly when he recognised her smell. Clean, of salt water and the faint hint of trees.

Marco sat up slowly, illuminated by the reddish light of the setting sun, and looked down at his sleeping wife. His siblings had been right to bring her here. He hadn’t allowed himself to mourn properly, let alone be fully vulnerable. He knew he could have been around his family, but he hadn’t wanted them to see him broken. Which apparently he had absolutely failed, he had worried them. A lot.

It was weird. The now acting captain was physically a lot stronger then her. Almost a head bigger too. With rare powers that made him almost invincible. His body, but not his heart. His wounds had healed, but his heart was still bleeding. Neither his skills as a doctor nor his phoenix powers could heal that. But his heart didn’t only belong to him, it belonged to Erika too.

Just her presence eased the pain. Her voice, a voice of reason. The same voice she hadn’t used much for the first years they had know each other. Her voice that was so soft and calming to him, even more so then the sound of the waves.

Erika meant home and safety to him, something he had thought to be lost. Which had been such a foolish thought. Not everyone was gone. His siblings were still there. Erika was still there. They still had a future!

Would it be an easy one? No, probably not, but they had each other. They were family. They would help each other and survive. They would live to see this new age of pirates.

He leaned down and gave her a gentle kiss on the lips. She opened her eyes, blinking a few times before smiling and rising one of her hands to caress his cheek.

“You look better.”

“I’m feeling better. Thank you, yoi.” He placed an other kiss on her lips and murmured: “I love you.”

“I love you too.”

***

They didn’t talk much after that, just enjoyed each other’s company snuggled together and listened to the sounds of the ship preparing for the night. It had gotten fully dark by the time they heard the last big bustling of feet when the watch was changing. After that the ship started to become quite.

“You smell so good, yoi...” Marco had buried his face in her hair before nuzzling her neck.

Erika just chuckled softly and played with his hair.

He sighed and leaned into her touch. “I think I need a shower... join me?”

She raised an eyebrow, her eyes half way closed, before chuckling again at Marcos light blush.

“Not like _that_ , yoi!”

She gave him a peck on his cheek and smiled. “I know, but I couldn’t resist if you ask me like that, honey.”

He laughed lowly and leaned closer to her, now making pale pink appear on her cheeks. “Point taken, yoi...” Marco closed the gap between them and gave her a long and soft kiss on her lips.

Erika tried to follow them when he separated from her again, starting to sit up, and making him chuckle now.

“So, wanna join me?” He stood up and offered her his hand, which she took without hesitation.

“Of course.”

***

Ten minutes later the couple was alone in one of the baths, door locked behind them. The air was still warm and filled with steam. The faint smell of soap and shampoo still lingering behind too. They had seen each other naked countless times before, so they didn’t feel the need to cover anything up.

Marco sat on a small stool, washing his legs, when Erika kneeled down behind him and took the shampoo bottle that was sitting next to him. Without having to exchange a word he sat up properly and leaned his head back. She washed his hair and lightly scratched his scalp with her fingernails, causing him to get goosebumps and to moan slightly while closing his eyes.

She took the shower head and carefully rinsed out his hair, before taking a piece of soap to clean his back.

Her warm hands massaged his shoulders and rubbed out the tension that had build up there over the last weeks. Marco sighed in relief when she leaned closer for a moment to give him a kiss between his shoulder blades.

He opened his eyes and looked behind him, eyes halfway closed and smiling fondly and relaxed. “Thank you, Erika.”

She returned his smile and gave him a soft kiss on his lips, which made his smile only grow brighter.

“It’s your turn now, yoi.”

“You don’t have to...”

“But I want to.”

They changed places and Marco placed her braid over one of her shoulders, so that it wasn’t hanging on her back, before he started to wash her back.

He loved her back. When they were young, before they even became a couple, Erika used to hate it and feel self conscious about it. He could feel the old scars under his hands, now hidden by an intricate tattoo. One of Izous best works. And you would have never guessed that a big part of it was added years after the initial tattoo.

Two flaming birds, one an orange-y red the other one a turquoise blue, both with matching golden yellow accents, dancing around each other. Surrounded by feathers and sparks.

She had asked Izou if he could add the blue one after they had gotten married, without his knowledge. He had almost cried the first time he had seen the altered version after he had come back from a long mission.

The initial phoenix hadn’t had a connection to him in the slightest. It had been the symbol of a new beginning for her. It had made it easier to leave the bad things of her past behind. Reborn from the ashes, like a phoenix.

At first she had refused to show it to anyone, because she feared people would think the wrong things. But everyone knew it wasn’t supposed to be him. Yes it was a phoenix, but it wasn’t Marco. The first one had been the warm orange of a camp fire in the middle of the night.

The second one was meant to be him. The tattoo now a symbol of their love.

He finished her back and gently took her braid into his hands.

“Can I wash your hair, yoi?”

She nodded. “But braid it again afterwards, please.”

Marco pulled the hair tie off of the end of it and loosened the strands with long remembered movements.

Erikas hair was long, soft and almost black after he had let some water run over it. He washed it with just as much care as she had his and made sure to rinse out every last bit of shampoo, before braiding it again. Something he had learned from Izou and Bay. Before he had asked Erika if he could braid her hair for the first time he had actually asked Pops if he could practice with his hair. He had just gotten a rumbling laugh and a nod as an answer.

“Thank you.”

“Anything for you, Angel, yoi.”

He stood up to get a towel, but not before giving her a peck on the cheek.

Marco came back, opened his arms while holding the towel, waiting to wrap her up. Drying each other up, and the inevitable hug was a bonus.

Erika snuggled into the fluffiness and leaned against him while he held her close, resting his head on hers. He yawned before nuzzling her hair.

“Let’s go back to sleep.” She looked up to him and caressed the faint rings under his eyes.

He smiled down at her and kissed her forehead. “That sounds great, yoi.”

A few moments later they were on their way back to his temporary cabin, fingers interlaced with each other’s. In this moment they were happy, able to forget what had happened for just a few hours.

And not even noticing the relieved and fond smiles of Haruta and Vista when they saw them vanish at the end of a corner.

**Author's Note:**

> Someone still there? I hope you liked it! I quite enjoined writing this, even though it’s totally different from what I usually write.


End file.
